Poppy Seed Cake With Sour Cherry Fillig

This is my first sweet cake in my 12 Slice Cake mould. I have to say baking sweet cake is more difficult than the savoury one, but it is only the case of practise. The cake was requested again by my poppy seed "addicted" husband. In the end he even persuaded me to serve the cake with poppy seeded sauce.

Poppy Seed Cake with Sour Cherry Filling

 For the sponge
210 g self-raising flour
210 g butter at room temperature
200 g golden caster sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
4 eggs
50 g poppy seed
1/2 lemon zest

For the filling
fresh or bottled sour cherries
200 g summer fruit sauce, or pie filling or jam+red jelly  (whatever you have at home)

For the decoration
150 g double cream
Kirsch 
a small strip of chocolate transfer sheet
20-30 g white chocolate

First I prepared the chocolate decoration.

Lay down an approx 6 cm wide chocolate transfer sheet, with the textured side up. Spread the melted chocolate with an offset spatula knife evenly on the transfer sheet. Put the transfer sheet with the board underneath to the freezer to harden up.

Heat the oven to 180C and spray the Zila tin with a vegetable oil based separating agent

Put all the cake ingredients except the poppy seed in a  large bowl. Beat them together with an electric mixer until you have a creamy mixture, then fold in the poppy seed.

Pour the cake mix into the prepared tin and bake in the oven for 20 -25 minutes or until the sponge springs back when pressed. Always check the middle of the cake as with Zila mould that is the most important thing. If you think it is ready and you turn it up side down, but the middle is sill a bit underdone just put it back to the oven without the silicone part(the cavities upside).

If the bottom of the cake is not flat, just level it so the cake will stand straight when you turn it up side down- just use the stainless steel ring as your guide. Pour some sauce to the cavities and fill the rest of the space with sour cherries. Pour the remaining of the sauce on top of the sour cherries.

To decorate, whip the double cream with some Kirsch (amount depending on your taste, but 2-3 tbsp should be enough) to soft peaks and pipe it around the cake. Take out the chocolate from the freezer, cut out triangles and insert 12, 1 in each part.

Caramelized Onion and Mushroom Cake with Egg filling

I made this cake for our vegetarian friend who come over last week. This time I had to create something without fish so I have chosen some great ingredients instead: onion, mushroom and egg.

Caramelized Onion and Mushroom Cake with Egg Filling

Ingredients for the cake

350 g plain flour
1 1/4 tbsp baking powder
8 tbsp sunflower oil or 100 g butter, melted and cooled
pinch of salt
freshly ground black pepper
3 eggs
300 ml butter milk 
3 onions finely chopped
1tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tsp sugar
150g tinned mushroom chopped or fresh mushrooms fried slightly on a knob of butter

Ingredients for the filling
7 hard boiled eggs
4 tbsp mayonnaise
3 tbsp soured cream (only 1-2 if you want to pipe the cream)
1 onion finely chopped
2 garlic bulbs
1-2 tsp english mustard
freshly ground pepper

cucumber to decorate

First prepare the filling so the mixture can intensify the taste with time. Peel the eggs and chop it to small pieces, you can use a food processor if you want. Add the mayonnaise, soured cream, finely chopped onion and garlic, mustard and season with pepper if needed.
Just mix together, cover with cling film and place it in the fridge for at least 2 hours.

Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a frying pan. Add the onions and cook for  3 minutes, or until beginning to soften. Add the vinegar and sugar and cook, stirring occasionally, for a further 10 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.

Meanwhile preheat the oven to 200C and spray the tin with a vegetable oil based separating agent.Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and pepper to taste into a large bowl.

Place the eggs in a large bowl and beat lightly, then beat in the buttermilk and oil. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients, pour in the beaten liquid ingredients and add the onion mixture and the mushrooms. Stir gently until just combined: don't over-mix  Spoon the mixture into the tin and spread evenly to be layered.

Bake in the prepared oven for 20 minutes, or until well risen, golden brown and firm to the touch. Leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes then turn it upside down and remove the silicone cover  and the steel ring

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 When it is cooled, all you have to do is to spoon the filling into the cavities, decorate and serve:)

In the end I served with some balsamic glaze and mixed salad with olive oil on top....The photo of the sliced cake not the best again.........hmm I have to learn how to use other function on the camera than the automate.

Smoked Salmon and Dill Cake

I haven't posted for a while, because we went back to Hungary to spend the festive season with our families. Ohhh all the lost weight come back in no time because I couldn't resist all the fabulous food. But by the end of my stay I managed to fulfil my 6 months desire: purchased my new "toy", the Zila cake mould, while staying in Budapest. Sadly it is quite expensive in the home kitchen environment (as this product originally designed for professional kitchens and caterers), but I rather pay more, than get some cheap, poor quality product. 

Smoked Salmon and Dill Cake

Ingredients for the cake

350 g plain flour
1 1/4 tbsp baking powder
8 tbsp sunflower oil or 100 g butter, melted and cooled
pinch of salt
freshly ground black pepper
3 eggs
300 ml butter milk 
150 g smoked salmon finely chopped, plus extra to garnish/150 g salmon, pan fried and seasoned with a pinch of salt
2.5 tbsp chopped fresh dill, plus extra springs to garnish

Ingredients for the filling
300 g soft cheese/cream cheese
20 g chive, chopped to small pieces
100 g soured cream
freshly ground back pepper
100 g smoked salmon finely chopped
1 tsp lemon juice

tomato and cucumber to decorate

First prepare the filling so the mixture can absorb all the lovely smokiness and intensify the taste with time. Just mix together the soft cheese, soured cream, chopped chive and smoked salmon. When finished add the lemon juice and pepper to taste and mix well again. Add some more soured cream if you find the mixture stiff, but it should be just right. Cover it with cling film and place it in the fridge for at least 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 200C and spray the tin with a vegetable oil based separating agent.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and pepper to taste into a large bowl.

Place the eggs in a large bowl and beat lightly, then beat in the buttermilk and oil. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients, pour in the beaten liquid ingredients and add the smoked salmon and chopped dill. I actually used salmon fillet and pan fried it, otherwise it would be really expensive. Stir gently until just combined: don't over-mix  Spoon the mixture into the tin and spread evenly to be layered.

Bake in the prepared oven for 20 minutes, or until well risen, golden brown and firm to the touch. Leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes then turn it upside down and remove the silicone cover  and the steel ring

.

 When it is cooled all you have to do is place the filling in a piping bag that has a big star nozzle. You need a special big nozzle otherwise the salmon pieces could block the piping bag. Pipe the filling into the cavities, it is just enough to fill all 12 of them. 

 Decorate with tomatoes, cucumber and some dill.............or whatever you find pretty. In the end I served with some balsamic glaze and mixed salad with olive oil on top....It was delicious. There were 4 of us and we still left two pieces untouched. So I managed to create something delicious, filling and pretty in 40 minutes.......the prefect party food.

 I apologise as not the best pictures in the end, but the guests were waiting for me to join them, so I just rushed it all and the sharpness is on the salad leafs.......